Last week's unveiling of the 2014 Jeep Cherokee in advance of the New York Auto Show triggered a polarizing range of reactions: While some embraced the crossover's forward-thinking design, others thought it looks like it's sucked on a lemon a tad too long (and some have gone so far as to re-render it, sans sour-face)... but more curious than the style reactions is the chatter surrounding the Cherokee nameplate.

The original Jeep Cherokee (or SJ-series) was a hulking, full-sized proto SUV produced by AMC from 1974 to 1983, while the smaller, boxy, unibodied follow-up (dubbed the XJ) became a favorite of both urbanites and hardcore offroaders. Both of those rather different but distinctive Cherokees were beloved for a variety of reasons, which begs the question as to whether Jeep should be delving into history when naming their new crossover, or coming up with a new name for their squinty-eyed sport 'ute, especially when it promises notable breakthroughs like 45 percent better fuel economy than the Liberty model it replaces.

This isn't the first time the Chrysler Group has dusted off an old name for a new car (consider the Dodge Dart, for starters), but should it be the last? The true gauge of that crucial marketing choice will be determined by the Cherokee's sales response when finished cars ship from Chrysler's assembly plant in Toledo, Ohio to showrooms in the third quarter of 2013.